Somehow we managed to convince ten others that it would be a good thing to do and at 7pm we met in our college bar, The Vernon Arms. I'd been put in charge of organising taxis to the ground but by ten past had realised that taxi firms in Durham are fucking useless. They're like Danny Shittu. But worse than Danny Shittu; try a Danny Shittu with no legs. Taxi firm after taxi firm took pride in announcing that there were "none available" and it was hastily decided that we were going to have to make the two mile journey on foot. My iPhone was the leader; tracking your progress on Maps still excites me to this day.
The Citizens play at New Ferens Park which as mentioned previously is approximately two miles outside Durham city centre. We approached the ground's version of "Wembley Way" just as the referee blew his whistle to begin proceedings. After picking our way through the muddy, grassy "Wembley Way" we pay our admission of £3 and settle behind the far goal. First observation. There's barely anyone here. Second observation. The pitch is astro-turf! Its not great. But we're here to enjoy it all the same. Chesterfield supporting Demetri is loving it; he's been talking to the Citizens' star man Scott Fenwick all week on Twitter and is clearly enjoying the fact he can see Old Fenners in the flesh. He's a big lad and shows early ability in holding the ball up in the face of Penrith's giant centre half.Durham haven't won in five and have recently appointed Adam Furness as their new manager; this being the new man's first game in charge. And with us egging them on from behind the goal, the unbelievable happens. City take the lead. For non-league football, its a fine goal; an excellent move completed by a fine finish from Gary Shaw. As well as putting the Citizens ahead, there's also another positive to be taken from the goal; we've learnt the name of another player. Our tally stands at two.
Toby and myself get chatting to one of the locals; an elderly gent with a Durham City scarf on. True fan. He tells us tales of the problematic managerial reign of Dickie Ord, as well as explaining about the club's voluntary relegation last season. Ironically, this was the act that saved my local club, Wakefield FC, from playing in the division Durham are in now. The man's continued cries of "Come on Elliott" lead me to ask whether he's a father or grand-father, but he's not; he's just a die-hard fan, but even so, Elliott Cutts is now added to the list of players we know.
In amongst our tale-telling with said gentleman, Durham concede twice. The first is a soft penalty, very soft, one in a long line of questionable decisions by the referee. The second is appalling, bog-standard non-league defending, something which we see a lot more of as the game wears on. But spurred on by ourselves, City equalise again. Another excellent move this time finished off by Number 9. The tannoy announces the goal-scorer to be Connor Winter - its only half-time and we already know four members of the team. Two-two is a fair reflection.
Half-time is spent experimenting with Durham's food kitchen; my late night snack of a cheeseburger, chips and a Diet Coke costs £4.50. Although this is more than the admission to the game, its well worth it. The chips are especially excellent. I attempt to book a taxi to pick us up an hour later; once again my attempts are in vain and when the last firm hangs up I concede defeat, believing that my number has been blocked by every taxi company in Durham. How I miss Ace Taxis of Wakefield.
Penrith re-take the lead instantly at the start of the second half; more suspect defending allowing Martyn Coleman to turn and shoot from a corner. The goal wakes Durham up and here begins their best spell of the game. Our hero Fenwick comes close twice, firing once into the side-netting before finding the roof of the net with an ambitious chip. Finally the pressure gives; the referee awarding a second penalty after a foul on Craig Ellison. Dan Madden makes no mistake; Durham are level at 3-3.
Our one and only chant of "ohhhhhh Durham Cityyy" isn't catching on amongst the locals, but we feel our thirteen man show is working wonders. And with 78 minutes on the non-existent clock, Durham take the lead. After been sent through by Fenwick, Connor Winter shows excellent composure, rounding the goalkeeper before rolling the ball into an empty goal. We erupt. Its such a huge moment that even the fifty or so sat in the seated area are off their feet for the first time since their first game in 1984. Durham lead 4-3.
So far, our Fenners isn't living up to his pre-match Twitter promise that he will "bag a hat-trick". But the self pronounced "top bagger" has the ball in the goal on 83 minutes. After planting his header in the far corner, he actually storms over to us, running down our thirteen man line for high-fives. We can't believe it, we're touching our non-league hero. The referee's assistant has alternative ideas; adjudging Fenwick to be offside. And a minute later, the should be 5-3, turns into 4-4. One final act of poor defending from the Citizens ensures that Penrith would be heading back to Cumbria with a share of the spoils.
It wasn't ever going to make any news headlines, but the 109 that attended were thoroughly entertained. In my life I've paid £35 to watch Leeds lose 2-1 to Walsall, 5-0 to Blackpool and 3-0 to Swindon to name a few. So to pay £3, see eight goals and have a quiet-ish night with some new university friends was a perfectly acceptable way to spend my Tuesday night.
No matter what level, football is football. Tonight's game proved why its the best game in the world.
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